- Interested in an easier, simpler way to plan whole units? Check out the above resource from the NCDPI; aligns with the ELA Pilot framework from the Mississippi-Delta TFA Institute 2011.
Lessons/Tests Related to Particular Devices:
Included below (in alphabetical order): annotation, characterization, irony, mood, parody, tone
Annotation:
Annotation.doc - An introduction to how to teach it and why.
Characterization:
Texts to consider: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Techniques for deepening character comprehension: write a letter to one character from another, write a letter from yourself to a character, write a journal entry from the perspective of a character, rewrite a passage from the perspective of a different character than the one who narrated it in the original text, create collages that depict the key character traits, bring in objects that symbolize key character traits, provide an entirely new and whacky scene for the main character of the book (one one not found in the book) and have students write about how the character would act
Texts to consider: "Lambs to the Slaughter" by Roald Dahl; "Trifles" by Susan Glaspell
Mood (sensory imagery, word choice):
Texts to consider: "The Tell Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe, "The Mask of the Red Death" by Edgar Allen Poe, "I Used to Live Here Once"
Techniques for teaching mood: begin by first teaching sensory imagery because mood is developed through use of specific words by authors and students must first be able to pick out these words before they can analyze how the words should be making them feel; next ask students if the scene is supposed to give a "good" or "bad" feeling; once you have established whether it is "good" or "bad" you can decide in what ways (bad = frightening, suspenseful, foreboding, tense, violent... etc.)
To Introduce Mood: use music
Parody:
Key Points:(before introducing parody, introduce humor writing and humor techniques more generally)
a parody is a humorous imitation (copy) of an original
a parody must be trying to criticize or make fun of the original or some other thing!
Non-Example Check for Understanding: Is a knock-off/fake Louis Vuitton or Coach purse a parody? No. It IS a copy/imitation BUT it is NOT trying to criticize or make fun of anything.
Non-Example Check for Understanding: Is it a parody if someone slips on a banana peal in a movie and the audience laughs? No. That is funny/humorous, but there is no original.
Possible Misunderstandings:
That all things that are funny are parodies.
That all things that are copies/imitations are parodies.
Parody is difficult for students because the AUTHOR'S INTENTION/MESSAGE is normally different or even opposite from the SPEAKER WITHIN THE TEXT.
Underfunded School to Cut Past Tense.doc (Parody newspaper article. Challenges include: students may not understand the concept of key aspects of school getting cut due to funding, students understand the lack of the past tense in the article -- students may not realize that "ed" is missing from words and that this is incorrect and therefore funny.)
First, analyze "Gangsta Paradise" by Coolio on its own and watch music video.
Possible focus question: Why does Coolio call it a "paradise"? Does he mean that word seriously or ironically? What is his opinion of "gangsta" life, and how do you know?
Second, analyze "Amish Paradise" by Weird Al and watch music video. (You will need to preview Amish culture and acceptable norms for discussion.)
Possible focus question:What is Weird Al (NOT the song's Amish speaker) trying to poke the most fun at/criticize: the Gangsta lifestyle or the Amish lifestyle?
The original? "Gangsta Paradise" - which may use the word "paradise" ironically but has a serious message and tone about the difficulties of gangster life
What is the humor? Amish culture is exaggerated to the point of absurdity. There are incongruous moments (for example, when the Amish singer expressing the desire to kick a little boy and taking glee in the fact that he will be sent to hell.)
What is the criticism/message? (1) A critique of Amish life - that it is boring, unreasonably restrictive and therefore in no way a "paradise" (2) A critique of Coolio's complaints about "gangsta" life - pointing out that many cultures have difficult or challenging lifestyles and some are more productive or holy
This ad parodies the "Got Milk?" ad. The breakdown:
The original? "Got Milk" - a cow (not a pig) advertising something healthy (milk)
What is the humor? The pig looks absurd with snot dripping from its nose and a hot water bottle on its head. It is a funny role reversal because instead of a "swine flue" it is as "swine with a flu".
What is the criticism/message? The swine flu has become as widespread as milk. You can pick it up anywhere!
Tone:
Key Points
Tone is the AUTHOR/SPEAKER'S attitude/feeling about their topic (how they FEEL about what they are talking about)
Tone is different than mood. Mood is how the writing makes YOU feel as a reader. Tone is how the AUTHOR feels about what they are writing about.
Tone is HOW they are talking, not WHAT they are talking about.
Example: A writer could describe a dead body with a TONE/FEELINGS of fascination and excitement. The DEAD BODY might be spooky or gross, but if the author's feelings toward it are positive, than the TONE is positive even if we usually think of dead bodies as negative.
Possible Introduction/Hook:Pick three students who are good actors/actresses. Hand them cards with the following instructions:
Student #1: When Ms. Mo asks you to read the words "OH GOD IT IS TUESDAY!" Read ONLY these words. But when you read them, make it clear from HOW YOU SAY THEM that Tuesday is the day of a big test that you forgot about until just now and you are totally scared and upset.
Student #2: When Ms. Mo asks you to read the words "OH GOD IT IS TUESDAY!" Read ONLY these words. But when you read them, make it clear from HOW YOU SAY THEM that Tuesday is your least favorite day of the week because you have to babysit all night and get no time to yourself, so you feel exhausted just thinking about it.
Student #3: Student #1: When Ms. Mo asks you to read the words "OH GOD IT IS TUESDAY!" Read ONLY these words. But when you read them, make it clear from HOW YOU SAY THEM that Tuesday is the day that you are going to a big concert for your favorite artist that you have been looking forward to for months and you are really excited.
Tell the rest of the class, the three people at the front of the room each have something to say. I want you to listen and then tell me what is the same and what is different about what each of them said. After the students have read their lines "Oh God, it is Tuesday!" have their classmates explain what was the same (the words) and what was different (the emotion). Ask questions like, "What do you think is happening on Tuesday for student #1?" or "How does students #2 feel about Tuesday? How do you know?" After a minute of chatting, have the students read the whole card. Then explain to students: We could tell a LOT about how these students felt about Tuesday from their TONE -- the attitude or feeling they said their line with. They all said the same thing but used a different TONE (or emotion) to say it. In writing, we have to be able to imagine how a character or author would sound emotionally -- what their TONE would be -- so that we can make guesses about how they feel about things, even if they don't come right out and say it (like in this example.)
Lyrics: Play two versions of the "Star Spangled Banner" for students. The first should be a classic version, used at the Olympics. The second should be the Jimi Hendrix version from Woodstock, where he makes each note sound like a falling bomb. Ask students to listen to the TONE of each song and draw conclusions about the ATTITUDE toward the U.S. that each artist feels (based on the TONE.)
I use this text as my introduction to asking specific questions. Break the story into small chunks of 5-10 lines at time. Project on the white board and have students generate specific questions and draw specific conclusions. Students might begin with questions like "What is going on?" Write this on the board and then say, "This is not specific." Cross it out. Demonstrate zoning in on specific words and even punctuation (like the exclamation points) and using them to generate more specific questions. Change "What is going on?" to "Do these exclamation points mean that these people are excited to see each other? Angry?" Go through the piece like this.
Focus Devices: sensory imagery, ambiguous as a lead in to concept of multiple interpretations
Focus Question: The last line of the story says, "Then she knew for the first time." What are the possibilities of WHAT she knows for the first time? How do we know?
Focus Devices: irony, mood, symbolism (of the title)
Focus Question: Why did Roald Dahl chose the title "Lamb to the Slaughter"? (a. What do "lambs" symbolize and what does this idiom mean? b. Who are all the possible "lambs" in this story? c. What is ironic about this title?)
Related texts: "Trifles" the one-act play is also about murder and relies on irony yet has a somber mood and complex theme about gender, as opposed to the lighthearted nature of "Lamb to the Slaughter"; before reading the text, introduce the term irony with "Isn't It Ironic" (the song.)
Focus Question: (1) What kind of relationship do the dentist and the mayor have, what caused it, and how do we know? (2) What sort of man is the dentist and what sort of man is the mayor? Who is more powerful? Who is more in the right? In the wrong?
Related texts: "The Use of Force" by William Carlos Williams is focused on the same theme or conflict of when it is justified to use force and it involves a doctor, just as this story involves a dentist
Post literature resources that could be applicable for any grade here.
(Return to main page.)Unit Template from NCDPI
Lessons/Tests Related to Particular Devices:
Included below (in alphabetical order): annotation, characterization, irony, mood, parody, toneAnnotation:
Characterization:
Irony:
Mood (sensory imagery, word choice):
Parody:
Tone:
Texts from different genres:
Short Stories:
One Act Plays:
Poetry:
Love:
Family:
Misc:
Non-Fiction Readings: